The Gordon Research Conferences bring together active researchers in a given area of research for the' purpose of in-depth discussion, including the exchange of new and unpublished ideas and technology. The 1994 Conference on Hormone Action represents the 25th conference in the series and an historic milestone in this very popular annual Gordon Conference. The specific aim of' this proposal is to obtain partial funding for the Gordon Research Conference on Hormone Action. The conference will continue to provide a forum for the latest advances in molecular and cellular endocrinology. This is one of the few conferences that covers a wide spectrum of hormone action including discussion of hormones which act through plasma membrane receptors as well as hormones which act through intracellular receptors. The conference will be highlighted by three keynote talks covering recent advances in our understanding of male sex determination and the function of the Y chromosome, the discreet role of second messenger signals in gonadotroph function, and the molecular and electrophysiological basis for learning and memory. Eight sessions are planned covering membrane receptor function, steroid synthesis and receptor mechanisms, developmental endocrinology, growth factor physiology, phosphorylation and intracellular signaling, and neuroendocrinology. Two poster sessions are also planned for the conference in which many students, postdoctoral fellows and young investigators join senior investigators in presenting their work. All participants will be invited to submit an abstract for the poster session, giving everyone the opportunity to present data and participate in discussion. This conference brings together a diverse group of individuals ranging from basic scientists studying molecular mechanisms of hormone regulation, to physiologists and physician scientists interested in the integrative actions of hormones and their application to human disease. The limited attendance policy coupled with highly successful poster sessions, in which both younger scientists and senior investigators present their unpublished work, provides a highly favorable forum for an exchange of ideas.